The iBag Innovation: Locks After Credit Limit is Hit

When you open the door to your closet, are you amazed at the designer jeans in 47 colors, 200 pairs of shoes, 86 bags and 107 ensembles that have mysteriously found their way there? Do you have the perfect outfits for every occasion but not enough money to wear them anywhere except maybe your living room? If this is you, take off that mask (or at least return the 9 others you bought on sale in different colors) and face the fact that you need a check on your spending rather than more checks. Meet Australia's solution for binge shopping and credit card tracking; the innovative iBag.

Tracking credit card spending

Yes, this does mean that you would have to buy something else; namely the iBag, but it also means that your days of compulsive shopping are over. Here's how it works: The programmable bag tracks your spending and locks you out if you hit your credit limit. The ingenious creation of Credit Card Finder, an Australian comparison shopping site, is fitted with a clock and can be programmed to stay closed at those times of the day when you are most tlikely to buy something you don't need and might not even want.

The iBag's design

The iBag's RFID Chip: Source:CreditCardFinder.com.au

The iBag, which would be available in two different styles and colors, is designed to make you take a moment to think before you make a purchase; sometimes that's enough of a deterrent but of course, at other times it isn't. Inserted into the base of the handbag, an Arduino processor and a radio frequency identification tag (RFID) monitor the use of yur credit card. A GPS chip triggers an LED warning light whenever you and your bag enter a "danger zone." if you fear, as Oscar Wilde did, that "you can resist everything but temptation," you can nominate a trusted friend to serve a a "responsible other" to retreive a text if you ignore the warning signs and make a purchase anyway.

Motivation behind the iBag's creation and special features

The high-tech, innovative iBag is meant to curb out-of-control splurging and is the direct result of a recent study conductd by finder.com.au, which indicated that the financial status of most Australians couldn't be much worse. It revealed that consumers who spend the most on their credit cards make many unplanned purchases, and that 63% of card-holders charged more than $500 monthly and tthat one in four credit card-holders do not pay off the total amount.

Features of the iBag: Source: glassandglitter.com

The iBag has four features worthy of note:

• It closes when you are most suseptible

• It keeps track every time you pull out your wallet

• Your responsible other will be notified via SMS every time you use your wallet

• Flashing LED light will make you think twice when entering a danger zone

If these options aren't sufficient to stop you from binge shopping, the iBag has an even more serious alternative. The bag can be programmed to lock during your most vulnerable moments via a real-time clock. Thsi will force you to think about how much you really need and where you think you really could put that 6-piece orchestra comprised of stuffed goats playing instruments featured in the store window.

Conclusion

The creators of iBag have asked the public how they feel about this high-tech pocket-book and full scale production will only occur if there is enough demand for this most interesting accessory.

But here's a question: If you are passing a designated 'danger zone' and you need your keys instead of your wallet, can the iBag differentiate the reason why your hand is in there? Can you somehow wave a little white flag that sends a signal that a truce is needed so that you can get to your keys in order to go home?

Final thoughts about credit cards:

A man asked a genie to make him desirable and irresistible to women. She turned him into a credit card. ~Anonymous

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